Monthly Archives: March 2005

Actress Kawashima Naomi (photo, 44) has admitted that she is currently romantically involved with a Frenchman. The game was given away at the launch of the new women’s magazine Glamorous, held at a French restaurant. The always glamorous Kawashima has been with many younger men, the latest being Florent Dabadie (30), assistant to the former Japan national soccer team manager Phillipe Troussier.

• The NTV drama series “Gokusen” is enjoying huge success. Starring popular actress Nakama Yukie (25) as an ass-kicking high school teacher, the series scored an audience rating of over 32% for the 8th episode last Saturday night. It’s the first drama series to break the 30% figure on the network since “Ie Naki-ko 2” in 1995.

• A memorial is to be erected at the site of last year’s huge concert held by rocker Nagabuchi Tsuyoshi (48) on his home turf in the shadow of Sakurajima volcano in Kagoshima. Over 75,000 people turned out for the all-night event. The memorial will be officially opened on the first anniversary on August 21.

Young actress Ueto Aya (19) is to throw out the ceremonial first pitch for the newly named Softbank Hawks baseball team in the upcoming season. The team is based at Fukuoka Yahoo! Dome, while Softbank — bought the team from the financially troubled Daiei in the off-season — is a major investor in Yahoo! Japan. Ueto was chosen as she appears in the TV commercials for the Yahoo! BB broadband service. And who will be facing that first pitch? None other than Nippon Ham Fighters leadoff man Shinjo Tsuyoshi (33), the former Major Leaguer who is as much celebrity as baseball player.

• The latest western celebrity to hit town is Jennifer Lopez (34), in Tokyo to promote her 4th album, “Rebirth” and the Hollywood remake of the Japanese smash hit movie, “Shall We Dance?” It’s her second visit to Japan – she was here to promote her movie “The Cell” in 2001.

• Also in Japan for the second time is Canadian skate-punk rocker Avril Lavigne (20), who played the fourth date of a 14-concert tour at the Yokohama Arena on Sunday.

Popular singer and actress Matsuura Aya (photo, 18) is in the middle of her first romance, according to the latest issue of gossip magazine Friday. Ayaya has been linked with fellow idol singer Tachibana Keita (19) of the dance trio W-inds. She was spotted getting out of a taxi and entering Tachibana’s apartment with a shopping load of household items. Her agency acknowledged a friendship between the young idols, but refused to comment any further.

• Actress Ryou (32) is pregnant and expecting her first child in June. She and Brahman vocalist Toshi-Low (31) married in April 2003. The announcement is conveniently timed – she stars in the movie “Katarina,” scheduled to open on March 12.

Singer Go Hiromi (49) has announced his comeback after a break of three and a half years. He arrived by helicopter for a live performance for 500 fan club members at the Gold Coast Turf Club in Australia on Friday. He will release a new single “Ai Yori Touku” on April 20, and embark on his first nationwide tour in four years in October. Go has one of the most impressive line up of hits in Japanese pop, but his last big single was “Goldfinger ’99,” a Japanese version of Ricky Martin’s “La Vida Loca.” He married for the second time at the end of 2000.

• Young actor Yamada Takayuki (21) is to play the lead in a movie adaptation of last year’s surprise best-selling book, “Densha Otoku” (Train Man). The book grew out of a true love story that was played out on 2 Channel, Japan’s most popular Internet bulletin board. It was published last October and sold over half a million copies. Yamada will play the part of the 22-year old man who turned to the Web for advice on the pursuit of his first girlfriend.

This week female pop-punk trio Shonen Knife kicked off a spring tour in the US behind reissues of their first four albums. Formed in Osaka in 1981, they have had a following in the US since as far back as the early 1990s. The late Curt Cobain of Nirvana was a big fan. The trio even played with Nirvana on a UK tour prior to their big breakthrough with debut album Nevermind. For more info on the band and their tour dates, see this Rolling Stone article.

One of the most visible faces in TV commercials these days, Yamada Yu (photo, 20) is in yet another new CM. The latest one for Kanebo cosmetics features the young actress-model at the ocean under a deep blue sky. Yamada’s captivating smile is also working for Vodaphone, and she has been getting bigger parts in TV dramas. Like many top models, the Okinawa native got her start in the young women’s magazine CanCam.

• But the current CM Queen is actress Hasegawa Kyoko (26). Currently featuring in eight different commercials, including Canon’s Pixus, NTT DoCoMo, and Nihon Seimei, she made the No.1 spot despite not even being in the Top 10 last year. The rankings are based on on-air time in the Kanto, Kansai and Nagoya regions. The celebrity with the most actual ad contracts is Ueto Aya (19) with 18.

Actor Fujiki Naoto (photo, 32) is to get his first job hosting a TV show when he takes over the new version of “Oshare Kankei.” The long-running talk show, which has been on Nippon TV since 1974, will be renamed “Oshare-ism” and will air on Sunday nights from April 10. The show has been hosted since 1994 by Furutachi Ichiro (50), who recently took over as anchor on Houdou Station news show on TV Asahi, and assisted by Watanabe Marina. Their roles will be taken over by Fujiki and Mori Izumi (22), model and grand-daughter of designer Mori Hanae, in her first regular TV spot. Ueda Shinya (34) of the comedy duo Cream Stew will also be a regular, his first solo gig.

• A new anime version of “Hokuto no Kobushi” (Fist of the North Star) will feature Abe Hiroshi (40) narrating the role of Kenshiro. Popular actress and singer Shibasaki Kou (23) will make her “seiyuu” debut in the feature, scheduled for release in 2006. All five series of the popular manga will be made for film or video release by 2008.